1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention relate generally to the field of assemblies of anisotropic nanoparticles. Some embodiments of the invention relate to the field of highly aligned assemblies of anisotropic nanoparticles. Some embodiments of the invention relate to impurity distributed assemblies of anisotropic nanoparticles. More particularly, some embodiments of the invention relate to compositions of matter including highly aligned, impurity distributing anisotropic nanoparticles and methods of making structures including highly aligned, impurity distributing anisotropic nanoparticles.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Topotaxy is known to those skilled in the art of materials science. The term ‘topotaxy’ was defined by Lotgering and Gorter to include “all chemical solid state reactions that lead to a material with crystal orientations which are correlated with crystal orientations in the initial product”.
A problem with this technology has been that the production of a dimensionally large material shape requires a correspondingly large initial product. One unsatisfactory approach, in an attempt to solve the above-discussed problem involves the use of a single crystal as the initial product. However, a disadvantage of this approach is that for a given material of interest, a single crystal initial product having appropriate lattice parameters, that is also of the desired size and shape may not be available. Another disadvantage of this approach has been that even if an appropriately sized and shaped single crystal initial product is available, it may be prohibitively expensive for use as a chemical reactant. Therefore, what is needed is a solution that provides initial products having the necessary lattice parameters that are also of suitable size and shape. What is also needed is a solution that meets the above-discussed requirements in a more cost-effective manner.
Meanwhile, it has been known in the field of materials science to utilize impurities to facilitate chemical reactions. Also impurities may be desirable in a final product, as in most semiconductor devices. The nature and extent of the effect of the impurities depends on their concentration, location and interactions with the host material(s).
A problem with this technology is that providing beneficial impurities in the proper concentration and location (e.g., homogeneously throughout a reactant/reaction) can be difficult and/or expensive. For instance, ion implantation is spatially accurate and precise, but it is very expensive. Another problem with this technology is that impurities can diffuse, thereby exacerbating concentration and location issues, especially in liquid and/or gas state reactions. Therefore, what is needed is a solution that provides a beneficial impurity in the correct location and at a precise concentration. What is also needed is a solution that provides a beneficial impurity introduction method that is resistant to undesirable diffusion.
Heretofore, the requirements of providing 1) initial products for topotaxy that have the necessary size, shape and lattice parameters and 2) beneficial impurities in the correct location and concentration that are resistant to undesirable diffusion have not been fully met. What is needed is a solution that solves all of these problems.